Last week, I was perusing Facebook, as you do, and came across a post on one of the "Topps Facebook Trade/Buy/Sell" group page (not the actual name of the page...please don't look for it) saying that he was looking for singles from 2009, 2010, and 2013 Topps. Not necessarily expensive rookies, or key players from these sets, but, in his words:
My PC is Topps base cards from flagship and update (any card with stats on the back - no AS, LL, etc) for Hall of Famers, Stars, or Hall of Very Good. Focusing on all guys 1980-present first, then wil collect more vintage guys.
Hey, I'm always in the "collect whatever you like" camp. He has his categories, and he's out to collect them specifically. Some of the players on the list are some of the big names of that era, and a couple of Mantle cards to boot. I told him to give me a few days as it would take some time to dig out the boxes, and this was around the time of the National and my wedding anniversary, so it would take a few days. He said not to hurry. Below is the list.
It did take a few days and two separate messages letting him know what I found. On the first message, I reported that I found 24 cards:
- 2009 Topps: 355, 367, 490, 575
- 2010 Topps: 15, 48, 50, 56, 60, 70, 242, 243, 300, 320
- 2013 Topps: 15, 19, 27, 33, 36, 37, 105, 122, 206, 227
In my "organization" it appears that I had separated series 1 and 2 from all of these years. And in my initial hunt, I found boxes that contained 2009 Series 2, 2010 Topps Series 1, and 2013 Topps Series 1. It would be a bit more before I could find more (and I really need to write the years on the boxes so I'd have an easier time to find everything).
After more digging, I found more boxes and 24 more cards:
- 2009 Topps: 7, 24, 41, 135, 185, 224
- 2009 Topps Update: 1, 50 ,93, 174, 200
- 2010 Topps: 354, 403, 650
- 2010 Topps Update: 13, 100, 114, 266, 300
- 2013 Topps: 52, 454, 506, 519
After responding with the cards I found, I asked him how much he was willing to pay for everything, instead of me giving a price for how much I wanted.
Let me explain why.
In the past, I've had collectors ask me if I had cards from a certain set, or year (for inserts). For example, when I was uploading a list of 2013 Topps inserts into my trade/sell list, a collector asked if I was interested to sell some cards to him. He gave me a list, I responded with what I had (at least 30 cards) and a price that I thought would be fair for everything, I think I had quoted $65.00. His response was that the price I was asking for was too high and where I got the prices from? I responded a combination of sources: eBay, Beckett, Sportlots. I thought it was reasonable considering. I also asked him how much he would have offered to buy the cards for. In many cases, I would have agreed to whatever price he would have thrown at me (within reason...if he had said $1.00, forget it).
But he never responded. I was ghosted.
A similar situation happened again earlier this year. A member at the TCDB sent a request asking if I could "be kind enough to quote a price" on 36 cards that I had on my trade/sell list. Beckett pricing alone for the 36 cards ranged from a low $40.05 to a high of $102.25. I believe I quoted him at least $60.00.
His response? "Sorry, but I'll have to pass because I believe that to be way over-priced."
I answered him back, "I'm curious as to how much you were willing to spend for these cards plus shipping? If you had led off with an amount that you were willing to pay, I would have been more than happy to work with you for a price that would work well for both of us."
He didn't answer the question, just asked another one "Where did you obtain your prices from?" After saying the combination of sources...he withdrew the transaction. He didn't even counter-offer. Just ended the conversation. Well, his loss.
So I'm miffed. I decided from that point on, if someone is going to offer to buy cards, I'm going to let them dictate the price first. In this instance, for 48 base cards, I asked him how much he was willing to spend. He said $45. I said, "Sold!" PayPal information was given, the money was sent, and the cards were mailed the following day.
With the money burning a hole in my PayPal account, I started to think about what I should do with it.
If you recall, after the National, I was down to 17 cards left for my Series 2 insert want list. After sending trade requests to people on the TCDB, I was fortunate enough to get 9 cards from the want list, completing the Glove Works set and needing 4 cards each from the 1991 and Crooked Numbers set.
It was off to eBay. I found sellers who had all the cards I needed, which is good, because buying cards from different sellers will jack up the shipping charges. And for good measure, while I did not find an auction or BIN for the series 2 version of the 2026 Topps Bulk Order (the exclusive insert set from Costco Flagship Super Boxes), I found two 5-card lots that somehow managed to include all 10 cards.
At the end of my eBay haze, I was left with $1.80 in my PayPal balance.
Mission accomplished.
I found another collector on Facebook looking to complete his 2017 Topps set. All series 2. All just base cards. I have an idea of how much I'd be willing to sell...
But maybe I'll let him give me a price again first. This approach seems to work.
Sincerely,
JayBee Anama
